Corn: March corn rose 2 3/4 cents to $6.80 1/2, ending the session above the 10- and 20-day moving averages. May corn rose 3 cents to $6.80 1/2. Corn futures spent much of the early session trading either side of unchanged but were able to inch higher as the soy complex grabbed further gains.
Soybeans: March soybeans rose 21 1/2 cents to $15.48 3/4. May soybeans gained 21 3/4 cents at $15.44. Both contracts closed near the session highs and closed at contract high closes. March soybean meal rose $6.60 at $497.70 and May meal was up $6.70 at $481.60. March bean oil rose 126 points to 62.77 cents and May bean oil gained 120 points at 62.95 cents, near the session high, hitting a four-week high. The soy complex today got a bullish weekend surprise with a very early frost last Friday and Saturday mornings in Argentina.
Wheat: March SRW wheat fell 15 cents to $7.50 1/2, closing below the 20- and 40-day moving averages, while March HRW closed 2 1/4 cents lower at $9.04 1/4. March spring wheat dropped 3 1/2 cents to $9.26 3/4. SRW futures traded steadily lower as the U.S. dollar posted moderate gains.
Cotton: March cotton futures rose 67 points to close at 80.92 cents after trading as high as 83.50 cents. May cotton futures rose 3 points to close at 81.53 cents, near the session low. May Cotton futures saw buying off the 81-cent psychological level this morning, showing relative strength to a lackluster oil market and a stronger U.S. dollar.
Cattle: Expiring February live cattle climbed $1.175 to a new high close at $164.75, while most-active April advanced 45 cents to $165.10. March feeder futures gained 35 cents to $186.875. Last week’s cash market advance, which carried the five-market average up $1.55 to $161.17, powered today’s futures advance, with the close posted by the expiring February contract implying cash prices will rise another $2.00-$3.00 over the next week (when the Feb. contract expires on Feb. 28).
Hogs: April lean hog futures jumped $3.825 at $89.10 today, nearer the session high and hit a five-week high. Solid cash hog market fundamentals and bullish charts are driving the futures market sharply higher.